Many things in the world shape who people become. Everyone makes mistakes, they try to learn from them and try to move on and not dwell on the past. Ones mistakes and the experiences that people go through in life shape the person that they become. In the Catcher in the Rye written by J. D. Slinger shows, various characters, events and symbols that illustrate Holder Coalfield’s struggles to accept his ineviTABLE transition into adulthood. Multiple people in the novel show and explain to Holder that there is more to life than being a child.
The events in Holder’s life have made it challenging to et go of the past. The various symbols displayed in the novel demonstrate Holder’s fight against becoming an adult. His lifestyle choices create great concern for his future with possible serious outcomes. Holder’s ability to appreciate the impact of his immature choices are recognized by those who surround him, yet they are unTABLE to convince him of this necessary change. Many characters in the novel try to help Holder let go Of his childhood innocence and move into adulthood.
Holder’s sister phoebe, expresses her concern about his resistance to getting older by telling her brother that he ever seems to care about anything, and always looks in the past, not the future. When Phoebe and Holder are arguing, Phoebe says; “You don’t like anything that’s happening’ (Slinger 169). Holder dwells in the past, with a fixation about Allis’s death despite Phoebe’s attempts to help Holder realize that he needs move on. Mr.. Anatolian, Holder’s previous teacher tries to give him a piece of advice in hope of having Holder recognize the value of maturity. Mr..
Anatolian States “The mark Of the immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark Of a mature man is that he wants to vive humbly for one” (188). What Mr.. Anatolian is trying to tell Holder is that he has to accept the ineviTABLE transition into adulthood. He tells Holder that he does not have what it takes to be a mature man and Holder does not finish anything he Starts. Mr.. Spencer talks to Holder because he tries to explain to him about failing in school and not wanting to try life. Mr.. Spencer questions Holder, “[Doc you feel absolutely no concern for your future, boy? (14). Mr.. Spencer is trying to get Holder to understand that if he does not try in school work, that he will not get anywhere in his future. These characters want Holder to try to grow up and have a future. Holder does not seem like he wants to be positive about his education. Various characters do not want him to have the qualities you learn when you are a child. Holder’s life has some people he can look up to in the future. Characters in your life that you start to come close with, affect your perspective on life and the events that happen.
Events in the novel have impacted Holder to not want to let go of the past because they affect him emotionally, physically and mentally. This is caused because of such a big trauma that happened in his life with his brother. Holder wants to live in the past and not move forward with his life because he feels guilty. Holder illustrates pain and suffering through his brothers death because he can not accept the truth that he died from Leukemia. Allis’s death causes Holder to live in the past, this is shown in the quote, “[T]hey all came when Allele died, the whole goddamn stupid bunch of them…
I wasn’t there; I was still in the hospital” (155). Allies death has been holding Holder back because he does not want to let Allele go. Holder still talks about Allele as if he is still in the physical world. Holder struggles to let go and move on with is life because he did not make it to his funeral and have the opportunity to say goodbye. Holder has no desire to commit to anything and actually try to do well in school. Holder is convinced that every school is full of phonies and keeps getting kicked out. When Holder is speaking with Mr..
Spencer, Holder says, “[T]his is about the forth school I’ve gone to” (9). This proves that Holder does not want to have an education if he keeps getting kicked out of the schools. Holder getting kicked out of the schools shows that he isn’t adult enough to handle anything in life. Holder decides that he is ready to have sex cause he thinks he is a sex maniac. The prostitute in the book named Sunny was ready to have sex when she got there. Holder wants to wait and get to know each other because he was nervous of losing his virginity.
Holder becomes nervous waiting for the prostitute he says, “l was a little nervous… If you want to know the truth, I am a virgin… I’ve had quite a few opportunities to lose my virginity and all, but lye never really got around to it yet” (92). Holder’s mindset is that he is not ready to lose his innocence and Holder is far from becoming an adult. Holder knows if he has sex everything would hanged physically and emotionally which he is not ready for right now. Events are making tremendous impact on Holder’s life and they have only made him remember the past instead of that is happening now.
Events are leading to the decisions that people make some are good and some are bad, but when you start noticing symbols about your life its starts to remind you of when you were a child. Many symbols in the novel show Holder trying to remain pure and not lose his innocence. The symbol The Catcher in the Rye shows that Holder wants to keep people from becoming mature and falling Off the cliff. The cliff is when children are about to fall into adulthood and when people do they end up falling off the cliff. In this quote it shows why he wants to keep people young and immature, “[T]husbands of little kids and nobody is around.
Nobody big, I mean except me and I am standing on the edge Of some crazy cliff. What have to do, I have to catch them… Led just be the Catcher in the Rye and all” (173). This quote determines that Holder does not want children to lose their pureness and innocence. Holder thinks that if he can try to save every girl and boy from wanting to have sex and becoming an adult he can be the Catcher in the Rye. The mummies in the museum help Holder express that he does not like change end rather them stay exactly the same.
When Holder goes to the museum he enjoys it because nothing ever changes there. Holder showing he does not like things changing is shown in the quote, “[T]hey wrapped their faces up in these cloths that they treated with chemicals, that way the mummies could be buried in their tombs for thousands Of years and their faces would not rot or anything” (203). This shows that Holder is not mature enough to lose his innocence because you change completely. Holder does not agree with children wanting to become n adult and lose their innocence because they are still so pure to him.
The symbol of the Carousel and the Gold Rings is that Holder realizes that if the kids fall, they will just have to get back up and move on with their life. The parents and people that are watching them ride the carousel and go for the gold rings can not say anything about them if they fall. The gold rings represent children falling off something into adulthood. Children want what they can not have unless they risk something is shown in the quote “[T]he thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the gold ring they will and there is nothing that you can do about it.
You just have to let them do it, if they fall they fall but it is bad if you say something to them” (211). Symbols are shown multiple times throughout the novel and have made a big difference on Holder’s perspective on life. The symbols establish that he is not mature enough to lose his innocence and become a complete adult because his childhood affected it. The various characters, events and symbols are displayed through Clinger’s Catcher in the Rye while it represents Holder Coalfield’s struggles to accept losing his innocence and turning into an adult. Characters in the novel include Phoebe, Mr.. Spencer and Mr..
